Octave of Stars Official Theme Song:
Welcome to the cereal serial version of Octave of Stars! Episodes will release every Monday and Thursday. If you’re finding this story for the first time, be sure to start at Episode 01 for maximum comprehension, or check out The Index for all available Episodes.
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The basement of Douglas' house was lined with sturdy concrete, but had plenty of lights to keep the atmosphere as cheery as possible. Ash had marveled at the thick blast door at the bottom of the stairs, after having been equally impressed with the camouflaged door in the hallway. When closed, it looked just like a featureless wall. There were several underground bedrooms, along with water and preserved foods enough to last for at least a year. Or so Douglas had told them.
One wall of the common room was devoted to a wall of televisions and computer monitors rivaling the collection in Lumina's own home. Some were connected to external sources, but most reported from the web of cameras keeping the property as secure as possible.
Gayle helped Lumina down the stairs while Azalea and Ash rearranged the furniture so they could all sit together. Douglas was in a wheeled office chair beside the computer controller.1 He sipped his coffee while waiting for everyone to get settled, still wearing a bathrobe over his casual clothing.
Ash straightened up from having moved the couch and turned to the other man in the room. "This is pretty impressive, I gotta say."
"Thank you," Douglas said, rubbing a hand over the bald part of his head. "I'm just glad to be able to give back."
"How did you get involved in all this," Ash asked, "if you aren't a Star too?"
He set down his mug. "I'm not, but my mother was."
Azalea sat down on the corner of the couch, eager for story time. Ash just stood, listening.
"Frost tried to get her to work with him on an agricultural project, using her Wood power on an industrial scale. When she didn't agree with the terms, he tried to force her cooperation, via my brothers and I." Despite the difficult subject matter, Douglas' blue eyes remained firm. "We ended up living in a remote cabin upstate, five of us total, living on vegetables that were always out of season. When she passed away, my brothers decided to stay there, but I wanted to do something to help. So, here we are," he gestured to the room and the house around it.
Ash said a prayer for Douglas' mother, having the chilling realization that death may be the only real peace they would ever have. "Well, thanks. I appreciate it. It's good to know there's a place like this."
Douglas sipped his coffee. "You're welcome. It's the least I can do."
Ash sat down beside Azalea, who was twirling a red pansy in her fingers. "That's funny, though, that your mom was a Wood Star, and so is Azalea, and her grandma."
"Great-grandma," she corrected. "But why? 'Cause we're all girls?"
Douglas nodded. "It's not just a coincidence. Historically, the vast majority of recorded Wood Stars have been women."
"Huh," Ash said.
"The philosophers agreed it's because of women's inherent ability to create life."
Azalea looked at the flower in her hands. "Well, I don't exactly create life, seeds are already alive, I just wake them up…"
Douglas leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. "Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes the growth." He opened them and looked at Azalea. "First Corinthians, chapter three, I believe."
Azalea nodded, eyes narrowed pensively. "Yeah…"
By this time, Lumina had reached the bottom steps and was getting settled. "Every Wood Star I've ever met has been a lady as well," she said to settle the matter.
Ultimately, Ash, Gayle, and Azalea sat on the wide couch in front of the bank of displays, with Lumina in a comfortable armchair. Douglas was in front of the computer, clicking and typing away at Lumina's instructions.
"There, just a bit more," she implored him. "Back up a few more frames, and… there." The image on the screen was like an artistic interpretation of raindrops, every single one was lit up as though they were each tiny, blue candles.
Ash tilted his head. "You're telling me you saw that?"
Lumina nodded. "Yes."2
"Super neat," Azalea said, "but what does it mean?"
The white-haired lady sighed. "It means… that my worst fear has come to pass."
Everyone sat silently, waiting.
"It is very likely, no, it is near certain, that Cascadia has been taken to the Tower."
"Dagnabit," Gayle said. "That's gonna make things real tricky."
Ash turned to her. "Please explain why."
"Downtown is the main office buildin' for Frost Enterprises. We call it the Tower. You cain't miss it, it's one of the biggest things in the city. And it's one of the most dangerous."
"If I am correct," Lumina continued, "then we may need to rethink our strategy. Perhaps wait until she is moved again and intercept her."
"Wait, hang on," Ash said. "Why don't we just all work together to bust her out? The three of us could go, and then once we have her, she could help too. With Gayle, Azalea, Cascadia, and me, nobody could stop us."
"Actually," Azalea piped up. "I'm pretty sure that since Cascadia is older than me, it should be 'Gayle, Cascadia, Azalea, and me.' The oldest person is always listed first."
Gayle raised an eyebrow. "Are you callin' me old?"
"Not at all!" Azalea smiled, patting her on the arm. "Just making sure we're being grammatically correct."
"So anyway," Ash said, "with all four of us, we should be able to handle Rand or Yin if we run into them."
"What about both of 'em at the same time?" Gayle said. "It's where they work, and now the hotel is empty, they'll definitely be there both. And that's not countin' on Frost himself, neither. It's his home turf, he's bound to try somethin'."
Ash contemplated this while Azalea spoke. "Guys and gals, we haven't asked a really important question yet. Lumina, why are you so certain she's there? What do the blue raindrops have to do with it?"
Lumina turned to Douglas. "Dear, please call up the file photographs on the machine."
"Just a sec," he answered, typing at the computer.
An image appeared on the screen below the raindrops, which looked to be a photograph taken of another photograph. It depicted a large four-chambered device surrounding a central pillar with a triangular pyramid atop it. "This," Lumina paused dramatically, "is the latest iteration of Drake's attempt at forcing his will upon the world. It's called the Prism Engine, but what it should really be called is an abomination."
The crew was listening nervously.
"It's designed on a principle which could be likened to a half-Prism, only using the power of four Stars instead of eight, but four very specific ones. Earth, Metal, Water and Darkness are all tied together on a certain polarity, opposite of the four of us, actually. Drake had three of the components he needed to use the device, until just recently. And now, with the fourth, I fear he has tried to activate it."
Ash examined the screen for a clue. "And this thing is in the Tower?"
"Yes, he had this one moved away from another facility once Gayle and Azalea nearly discovered it."
"And the blue rain?" Ash said.
Lumina nodded. "A full prism begets disasters, whereas a half-prism creates aberrations, what's the term with a computer?" She pointed a finger at him. "Glitches. Incorrect behaviours in natural things."
Ash shook his head. "Then we have to get her outta there."
Gayle sat forward from where she had been reclining on the couch. "I'm tellin' you, it won't be that easy. The Tower makes the hotel look like a stroll in the park. There's twice the security, and not just guard fellas, neither. They put all sorts of traps in there."
"You've been there before?" he asked.
Gayle's voice dropped. "Only once, and the only reason I got out again is 'cause I didn't hafta leave through the front door."
Ash brightened. "Then we'll do that. We get everyone up to the roof and then you fly us out."
Gayle shook her head while Azalea assisted in the conversation. "The only reason Gayle could carry you and I both the other night is 'cause I'm so small. If we had Cascadia too, I don't think we'd get very far. Unless you wanted to be super brave and stay there until she could come back for you or something."
Ash's brow furrowed. "Huh… What if we came in from the top then?" Gayle opened her mouth, but Ash answered his own question. "Probably shouldn't be flying around in broad daylight, huh?"
"We cain't go anywhere, though," Gayle said, her arms crossed, "until we have some more info. Lumina, you know how much of a peach I think you are, but unless you can see Cascadia through the window or somethin', us all troopin' in there ain't a rescue mission, it's just givin' up."
Ash turned to the seer of the group. "Can you see through the windows of the building?"
She had a tight look on her face. "There is one side of one floor which has no windows at all. I suspect this is intentional. Drake knows he has to go to great lengths to hide things from me."
Ash continued, although he was intrigued by that particular fact. "Okay, so a direct assault seems like a bad idea if he knows we're coming, and getting out again might be a little tricky. One of us might be able to sneak in though, somehow, but by now they know all of us."
"You ain't sendin' Azalea in there alone," Gayle said firmly.
"No, definitely not. Besides, she'd need some way to send a message back here, and they would definitely take her phone…"
Douglas shifted in his seat, a loud popping noise issuing from the swivel mechanism. He used this as an opportunity to contribute to the conversation. "I still have a long-range radio set, like the ones you used last night, and they're small enough to conceal pretty easily."
"Nope," Gayle said. "Sorry Doug, but no can do. There's a jammer or somethin' in the buildin', only their own radios work."
Ash continued to ponder. "Well, what about some other way that doesn't use technology? They can't confiscate our talents, or can they? Like a signal flare or something."
"How'd that work?" Gayle pointed out. "The only one of us who could do anythin' like send a signal would be Lumina, and there's no way she should be anywhere near there."
"What about a thermal camera?" Ash said excitedly. "I could get really hot and you could see me through the walls. Douglas, do you have one of those?" The fellow shook his head.
Gayle waggled her finger. "They'd stick you in a water tank instead of a cell before you could try that, though."
Azalea had been shaking her head as well. "Ugh, this is so frustrating, it's just one big puzzle. Any way we look at it, someone's gonna end up getting captured too. We get Cascadia out, but someone stays behind. We may as well just walk in and volunteer to get caught."
"Ash," Lumina said suddenly, surprising them. "Are you prepared to do whatever it takes to get Cascadia back?"
"Well, yeah," Ash said. "At this point, I'm pretty much willing to do anything."
"Good," Lumina said, sitting back in her chair. "Then we have our solution. Thank you, Azalea, for the inspiration."
"Glad to help," Azalea said, leaning forward. "What's the plan?"
"This is my proposal," Lumina said. "It is not, as some might think, an order of any kind," she nodded to Ash. "There is a way to send a message that is undetectable and untraceable, but only certain Stars have the capability of doing so. I spoke earlier about the half-Prism concept, and how Drake has gathered those aligned to himself. Well, I have also ended up doing the same thing," she looked around at each of the other three faces around her.
"Gayle and Azalea, you share a deep bond of sisterly friendship, but it goes beyond just your care for one another." The two girls in question smiled at each other as Lumina spoke. "You are linked together through what has been called an adjacency, or a nearness. Wind and Wood are tied in a pair." She turned to Ash. "And so are Fire and Light."
"Our eyes," Ash said, looking into a pair of gray ones like his own. "And theirs, too." The girls' green eyes shined together.
"Yes, that was the first clue the philosophers had as to adjacencies. It also means we bear certain other similarities. Tell me, Ash, do you know how your talent to determine the temperature of objects works?"
"Umm… no, I just know how hot they are without touching them."
"Indeed. You can do that because you project infrared light, as do I, although I can use many more types of light as well."
Azalea spoke up. "I can't move the air around though, unless I do this," she waved her arm in a circle.
"Keep it up, you'll learn," Gayle said, chuckling.
Lumina continued. "Your shared skill is not in action, but in perception. Gayle has very keen hearing, while you, dear, are emotionally sensitive. You have always been attuned to people's feelings."
"That's true," Azalea said.
"So, our plan will succeed through teamwork," Lumina said. "Ash, I will teach you the specifics of the technique, and tomorrow our plan will be put into action."
"Ugh, tomorrow?" Azalea whined. "That's Monday, I don't wanna be stuck at school all day!"
"This is true," Lumina nodded. "Well, I will call Jonathan and Emily as soon as we are finished here. I have no doubt they will understand."
Azalea's smile spread into a wide grin. "Yeah, I think so too."
Lumina continued. "So, we have a great deal of planning to do, but I judge the basic ideas are in place. If all goes well, tomorrow will be a very different day than today."
She leaned back as the light glinted off her glasses. Ash set his mouth in what he wanted to look like a confident grin, but ended up more like a determined growl.
Octave of Stars is currently airing on Substack for free, with two of the 45 total posts per week. It’ll be fully released at the end of April 2024. If you don’t want to wait that long, you can get the entire story right now, in either Ebook or paperback. Every purchase supports the ZMT Books mission of family-friendly entertainment.
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Complete with 909 dancing robots!
As Ash sips his boiling hot tea. Cheers!